The Phox's Fur
by ejwalker
Summary: Playing through Mushroom Shrine Tales as Phantom may result in obtaining inspiration for short, silly, and er... cute... stories like this. Oneshot.


"Luminous... Luminous, wake up!" whispered Phantom.

A blinding flash of light sent him staggering back, arms thrown in front of his face. "I knew there was a reason for not waking you up like this," he muttered. A sharp object nudged his throat, making him freeze.

"If you move before identifying yourself and stating your business, you are dead." The voice was as cold as the shining rod.

"Easy, Lumi," Phantom answered nervously. "It's just me. Your favorite criminal."

"Phantom?" Luminous sounded surprised and more than a little suspicious. "Since when does the master thief wear a hood?"

"Since I was helping out some non-humans and they decided my job required a make-over spell. How 'bout I take this off and you can see for yourself?"

"Slowly," Luminous instructed. He sat up in bed without moving his staff an inch.

Phantom obeyed. He watched Luminous expectantly as the hood came down.

The light mage's jaw went slack. "You..."

Phantom said nothing, enjoying the rare occurrence of Luminous being speechless.

Finally, Luminous regained his vocal ability... "You have ears." ...But apparently no rational thoughts to go with it.

"Most excellent observation," the thief complimented him.

"Animal ears," Luminous elaborated.

"Fox ears, to be precise. And a tail too." The ears matched Phantom's hair except for some purple on the insides.

The shining rod hung forgotten from Luminous's hand as he gaped. "Y-you look..." He swallowed hard.

Phantom sighed. "You can say it. I give you permission. Mercedes and Evan would already be squealing it at the top of their lungs by now... Which is why I wanted you to be the first to see me like this."

Luminous blinked, seeming to regain some of his composure. "Er... It suits you. Fox is an animal that fits your personality."

"That isn't what you were going to say."

"What I was going to say... is not... important." Luminous was having trouble focusing.

Phantom pretended to go back to his earlier contemplations. "Aran's reaction would be less painful to listen to, but he'd be chuckling... And I bet he'd go all baby talk on me while scratching between my ears."

The light mage forced himself to look away long enough to mumble, "Very well, I admit it. You are cute. As unfathomable as it may be to me..."

A motion in the corner of Luminous's eye drew his attention. The thief's purple-tipped tail was swishing triumphantly, and his grin would have been at home on any fox's face.

"If I'm cute, the other Heroes will mob me. I knew you'd handle it better. That's why I had to come find you in the middle of the night, when they weren't around. I need you to hold them off when they finally catch sight of me."

"You do not need me. You are perfectly capable in battle, and more so at fleeing."

"That isn't the problem." Phantom pouted, the fox ears drooping. Luminous had to stifle an urge to reach out and feel the yellow fur... His efforts did not go unnoticed.

"Are you tense, Lumi?" The thief immediately switched to a smirk, and one of his ears flicked in amusement. "You want to touch them, don't you? If even _you_ can't resist this charm, how will I be safe from the other Heroes? At best, I could deal with Aran before anyone else notices. But if one of the other two spots me first, the noise will attract everybody."

"You could stay somewhere else until the spell wears off."

"That'll take at least a week, if not several! Someone would wonder where I was."

Luminous frowned thoughtfully. "If I help you avoid being suffocated by their attentions, I want something in return."

Phantom tilted his head. "What do you want, my promise to not pick on you for a few months? A year?"

"No. I want to pet you."

It was the thief's turn to be surprised. "W-what?"

"How am I supposed to concentrate on defending you if I keep wanting to join the assault?"

Phantom had to admit that the light mage had a point, but he was still reluctant.

Luminous shrugged and laid back down. Next thing he knew, a fox ear was brushing against his hand. Phantom had seated himself on the floor next to the bed.

"Just until you fall asleep," the thief muttered unhappily. "If I have to be petted, I'd rather it didn't come with shrill adoration."

"No fear of that," agreed Luminous, fingers already moving. "I am still of the opinion that you are a pest, albei a semi-attractive and fuzzy one at the moment."

"I'm always attractive."

"Not to my way of thinking."

"That's 'cause you're not a lady."

Luminous tugged lightly on the silky fur. "The more you talk, the longer it will take me to fall asleep..."

Phantom quickly shut his mouth.


End file.
